GENERAL ACCOUNT: This account, which opened the year with a credit balance of £523/5/9, has finished with a credit of £506/5/1. General Offertories, at £3,235/5/6, show an all time high, and give an increase of £485 over the previous year, £480 of which is accounted for in increased support to the W.F.O. Scheme. It will be noticed from the accompanying accounts that the various Diocesan levies have amounted to £260, an increase over the previous year of £101. A large proportion of this increase is due to the fact that Special Offertories as formerly for Maori & Melanesian Missions, General Church Fund and Clergy Pension Fund have now been dispensed with, and all Parishes are now assessed for these purposes. The work of the N.Z. Anglican Board. of Missions has again been well supported by Parishioners and a total sum of £363/4/2 has been given to the missionary work of the Church.
The publication and distribution of the "Parish News" and of "Church and People" have continued throughout the year. The former has cost the General Account of the Parish £39/0/2 over and above £44/1/10 received by way of donations. We extend our thanks to those voluntary workers who have carried out the distribution of these papers.
PROPERTY: The work of alterations and repairs to the Vicarage, as mentioned in our last report, has been completed at a cost of £837. This sum was paid out of current revenue and gives rise to earlier comment of a very successful year financially, despite the fact that the General Account dropped back by £16 during the year. The alterations have made a very great improvement in the kitchen and laundry arrangements in the Vicarage.
Also, during the year, the sanitary conveniences at the Weraroa Hall have been linked up with the Borough sewerage system at a cost of £184/11/10.
NEW CHURCH: During the year £2,500 worth of debentures in the loan have been repaid, leaving the indebtedness at 31st March at £7,000. It will be noticed from the accounts that two subscribers have handed back their debentures as a gift to the Church. We are indeed grateful to these two persons and convey our best thanks for their generosity.
During the year, a sum of £1,599/6/- has been received by way of donations from Parishioners and others, including £600 from St. Mary's Guild. Included in the donations is a sum of £152/7/1 donated by various Parishioners for special items of furnishings. In addition, we received £173/19/7, being net proceeds from the Debutantes' Ball, held on 23rd August, 1957. Also, £54/8/4 was earned by way of interest on P.O. Savings Bank Account and a sum of £106/16/1, being interest on debentures, was donated back to the Building Fund by the debenture holders. Our very, best thanks are due to these Parishioners for their generosity. The above represent a total accretion to the fund during the year of £1,934/10/-.
Three stained glass windows for placing in the western wall of the Baptistry in memory of three deceased Parishioners are at present being manufactured in England, and these should soon be to hand.
Generally, we can look back on the past year as another of achievement in the life of the Parish. Having space available in the new Church enabled a Nativity Play to be presented in the Church on 17th December, 1957, which was very successful and, we hope, will be the forerunner of similar plays at future Christmas seasons. On 3rd December, 1957, a presentation of Handel's "Messiah" was given in the Church by the Horowhenua College Adult Choral Group, the net proceeds from the retiring collection, amounting to £16/19/6, being donated to the National Council of Churches Christmas Appeal, this being additional to the £25 given-to the Appeal from Parish Funds. We also record our thanks to an anonymous donor for the gift of a "Crib" depicting the birth of our Lord - this will be on display in the Church each year during the Christmas season.
We desire to extend our very warmest welcome to our Assistant Curate, the Rev. A. C. Bright, who was ordained at St. Paul's pro-Cathedral, Wellington, on 21st December, 1957, and commenced his duties in the Parish on Sunday, 22nd December, 1957. Mr. Bright received an official welcome at a function in the Parish Hall after the close of the nine-lesson Carol Service held on the evening of Sunday, 22nd December, 1957. We welcome Mr. Bright to the Parish and wish him a very happy and successful term of office at St. Mary's.
To all who have assisted in the administration of the Parish during the year we extend our best thanks. It is very difficult to single out any particular people for special mention, but we do feel that special thanks should be given to those ladies who attend to the flowers on the Altars week by week. These displays of flowers in the Church are no doubt a feature of our Church services and have evoked considerable favourable comment on all sides.
ANNUAL MEETING: The Annual Meeting of Parishioners will be held in St. Mary's Hall, Manchester Street, Levin, on Thursday, 8th May, 1958, at 8 p.m., when the usual elections of a Churchwarden, Vestry, Auditor and Parish Trust Board will be held, and we look forward to a large attendance of Parishioners at this Annual Meeting.
W. G. BENNING,
H. L. JENKINS, Churchwardens.
Levin, 5th April, 1958.
The statement of receipts and payments for the year ended 31 st March 1958 follows (3 pages) - but is not typed here.